Bloomberg New Energy Finance assess level of renewable energy investments over next 20 years

November 26th, 2011 by Bloomberg New Energy Finance

The annual value of renewable energy capacity installed will double in real terms to $395 billion in 2020, rising to $460 billion in 2030, compared with $195 billion in 2010 – according to analysis company Bloomberg New Energy Finance.

As a result, in 20 years’ time 15.7% of total energy production will come from renewable sources (including large hydro), up from 12.6% last year.

These are the results of the Global Renewable Energy Market Outlook, a major new piece of research published for Bloomberg New Energy Finance clients, presenting the firm’s latest forecasts on the size of the world renewable energy markets out to 2030.

Wind turbines on the coast of Rotterdam, Netherlands on 14 August 2011 (click image to expand - ©RLLord)

Geographically, Europe will remain one of the biggest markets Continue reading

Car2go launches fleet of electric car sharing vehicles in Amsterdam

November 24th, 2011 by Daimler

Car2go launches one of the world’s first large scale all-electric vehicle car sharing fleets in Amsterdam on 24 November 2011.

Three hundred smart fortwo electric drive vehicles will be available for on-demand mobility, without the necessity of returning them to a fixed rental station.

Car2go fleet of electric Smart cars in Amsterdam (click image to expand - image courtesy of Daimler)

Even recharging of the electric vehicles is not mandatory after each rental, because the range of the smart fortwo electric drive is eight to ten times higher than the average operating distance of a car2go rental.

Amsterdam will be the fifth city with a car2go service globally, but the first in Europe with an all-electric fleet. Continue reading

Assessing when global atmospheric temperature rises might be reached

November 24th, 2011 by Nature

A policy-relevant method of displaying climate change projections is presented in a Perspective published online in Nature Climate Change.

Climate change projections are usually presented as ‘snapshots’ of change at a particular time in the future.

Instead, Manoj Joshi and colleagues re-analyse existing projections and present them in ways that show when particular temperature thresholds will be crossed, shifting the emphasis from ‘what might happen’ to ‘when it might happen’.

This new approach can convey important, policy-relevant information about the timing of change that isn’t available from traditional maps of future change.

In particular, it emphasizes that lowering greenhouse-gas emissions would delay the crossing of temperature thresholds and buy valuable time for planning adaptation measures.

For example, if emissions remain high, global average warming will probably exceed 2 °C above pre-industrial levels by 2060, but reducing emissions could delay the time this threshold is crossed by up to several decades.

Their paper “Projections of when temperature change will exceed 2°C above pre-industrial levels” was published on-line on 23 October 2011.

High nutrient inputs exacerbate acidification of coastal waters

November 24th, 2011 by Nature

High nutrient levels could make coastal waters more susceptible to ocean acidification, suggests a study, ‘Acidification of subsurface coastal waters enhanced by eutrophication‘, published online in Nature Geoscience.

sewage entering Belle Greve Bay on 1 June 2009 (click image to expand - ©RLLord)

Alongside atmospheric inputs of carbon dioxide, human inputs of nutrients to the coastal ocean can lead to an increase in the acidity of these waters. Continue reading

Guernsey Water encourages wise water use

November 24th, 2011 by Guernsey Water

Guernsey Water encourages Islanders to think carefully about their water consumption and consider simple but effective ways to reduce water wastage.

The utility recently carried out an online survey to gather information about the Guernsey public’s water usage habits and to ascertain whether there were any examples of water wastage which could be addressed. Continue reading

Keeping global warming increase to below 2°C will be challenging

November 24th, 2011 by Nature

The internationally agreed goal of limiting global temperature rise to 2 °C is still achievable, but may be slipping out of reach, according to research published online in Nature Climate Change.

At the United Nations climate conference in Copenhagen in 2009, countries recognized that global average temperature rise should be limited to 2 °C above pre-industrial levels. Continue reading

Shrinking body size an ecological response to climate change

November 24th, 2011 by Nature

Organisms from primary producers to top predators are shrinking in size in response to climate change, according to a Perspective published in Nature Climate Change.

It is well established that species are shifting their distributions to higher elevations and latitudes in response to warming, and that key life events such as migration are happening earlier in the year. What is less appreciated is that many species are also becoming smaller, as an ecological and metabolic response to increased temperatures and variability in precipitation. If this trend continues, it could have profound implications for food security and the stability of ecosystems. Continue reading

The wind energy imperative

November 24th, 2011 by RenewableUK

Support for wind energy development in the UK costs only £10 in an average £600 electricity bill.  By 2020, it is expected that 90,000 jobs will be created in the UK’s wind energy industry.

RenewableUK’s Chief Executive, Maria McCaffery MBE, said “the irrefutable facts are that wind energy is providing a clean, secure supply of electricity to more than three million homes in the UK, displacing six and a half million tonnes of carbon dioxide every year”.

“Overall, the long-term cost-effectiveness of wind makes it an economic necessity for our future – we can’t go on relying on expensive imports of fossil fuels, which are the real reason why energy bills are going up. We need to explode some of these myths that are being peddled by anti-renewables campaigners. Many renewable energy detractors fail to understand the many benefits offered by renewable energy”.

A NEG Micon wind turbine turns in the wind (click image to expand - ©RLLord All Rights Reserved)

RenewableUK highlights the fact that the independent electricity regulator Ofgem says that the cost of supporting wind adds only about £10 per year to the average domestic electricity bill of £600 – a figure far lower than those misreported in some sections of the media. Ofgem has also warned that any failure to invest in renewable energy will result in domestic bills increasing by as much as 52%, if we remain over-reliant on increasingly expensive fossil fuels from unstable regimes abroad.

McCaffery also points out that a quarter of our traditional sources of electricity – coal-fired and nuclear power stations – will reach the end of their natural lives within the next ten years.  “Wind energy is vital for our future if we are to keep the lights on. The UK has the best wind resource in Europe. Wind turbines generate electricity for 80-85% of the time – far more than the lower statistics bandied about by some ill-informed commentators”, she said.

RenewableUK also highlights the enormous economic benefits wind energy offers in terms of job creation. About 11,000 people are working in the UK wind industry, many of them in highly skilled engineering jobs. By 2021, a study by the respected analysts Cambridge Econometrics shows that this will increase to nearly 90,000 jobs as we build a new low-carbon economy and meet our carbon reduction targets.

Waste isn’t waste until its wasted

November 23rd, 2011 by Gibsons Recycling Depot

Gibsons Resource Recovery Centre in British Columbia, Canada reduces residual waste.  It has been nominated in The Small Business BC Successful You Awards (SYA) contest, which is a province-wide event that recognizes and celebrates the important contributions BC’s entrepreneurs make to their local communities and the global economy.

Buddy says “waste isn’t waste until its wasted.”

Barb says “we believe that everyone should take responsibility for what comes into their lives.”

“Recycling is just one step on the path. We have to get beyond recycling. We have to look at what ways we can deal with this stuff in our own community,” Buddy says.

“There are so many innovators and creative people out there who are taking things that we consider garbage and making something out of them. There’s nothing that I have discovered in the discard stream that can’t be reused, repaired, reclaimed or turned into something else,” he says. Continue reading

Guernsey Post’s Cycle Challenge raises £2940 for Help a Guernsey Child

November 23rd, 2011 by Guernsey Post Ltd.

Guernsey Post’s Cycle Challenge has raised a total of £2,940 for Help a Guernsey Child.

Guernsey Post employees involved in the Cycle Challenge in aid of Help a Guernsey Child (click image to expand - image courtesy of Guernsey Post Office)

The challenge involved 27 Guernsey Post employees cycling 876 miles around Guernsey on heavy framed post bikes; which is the equivalent distance of cycling from Lands End to John O’Groats!

Senior Postal Worker Paul Wakeham who, together with Steve O’Connor, arranged the challenge said “we’re thrilled to be able to present Help a Guernsey Child with a donation of £2,940. I would like to say a special thank you to everyone at Guernsey Post who rose to the challenge, to the Houmet Tavern and Deerhound for supplying us with refreshments on the way round, and also to Guernsey Post’s Supporting Together Committee which very kindly donated over £1000 in sponsorship.”

Help a Guernsey Child was set up in 2001 to help disadvantaged local children and young people.

Rebecca McGowan, Help a Guernsey Child Charity Secretary said “On behalf of Help a Guernsey Child, I would like to thank everyone at Guernsey Post for raising such a fantastic amount of money. Every penny we receive goes directly to the needs of children and young people in the local community.”